Time: 10:00AM – 1:00PM, 1:30PM – 3:30PM

Location: Between Avon and Edwards and then Minturn area

Eagle River 07/15/225 Photo Album

After an excellent outing on the Eagle River on  7/7/2025, I was anxious to return. I checked the flows on the DWR website, and they were in the 250 – 300 CFS range. Fly shop reports indicated that decent fishing continued with ongoing hatches of PMD’s, yellow sallies, and caddis. I took the plunge and made the two hour drive.

The high temperature for Avon was forecast to reach 80 degrees, and that projection proved accurate. I selected my Sage R8 four weight, and I was positioned along the river ready to cast by 10:00AM.  To start my search for trout I tied a peacock hippie stomper to my line along with a light gray size 16 deer hair caddis, but these flies went unmolested in the first thirty minutes, so I made another change.

I decided to probe the depths since no insect activity was obvious, and I converted to a yellow size 8 fat Albert along with an iron sally and salvation nymph. None of these flies appealed to the trout other than a single refusal to the fat Albert. After a prolonged period of casting the dry/dropper with no positive results, I made another change.

Dark Olive Colors

I reverted to the double dry, and this time it featured a size 14 yellow stimulator and a size 16 light gray deer hair caddis. For this final session of the morning I crossed the river at a wide riffle section in order to work up along the left bank. I played the hunch that the left bank was unpressured, since flows only recently enabled a crossing. The hunch worked somewhat, as I landed two brown trout. The smaller fish grabbed the caddis, and the twelve incher snatched the stimulator.

Promising Area

At 12:20PM I began a retreat, but to do so, I was forced to wade downstream, until I found a section where crossing was possible. I managed to ford the river, but there were some scary moments. I hiked back to a spot with some large boulders, and I paused to eat my lunch. As I observed the river from my lunch perch, a dozen swallows dove and flitted across the river, but I was unable to determine what they were eating.

Handful

After lunch I swapped the caddis for a size 16 light gray comparadun, and I executed downstream casts along a seam in the pool next to my lunch spot, but the effort was futile. I elected to relocate.

For my afternoon session on the Eagle River I moved upstream to the Minturn area above the Gore Creek confluence. I operated under the assumption that the water temperature was cooler farther upstream.

Lots of Pockets

I arrived at a pullout and pulled on my gear and dropped down a short bank. I made five casts to a deep slot with the double dry that remained on my line, and as I prepared to move, I looked ahead and spotted another angler! What were the chances? I immediately returned to the car and drove another .5 mile, before I returned to the river.

Caddis Fancier

As it turned out, the move was fortuitous. Between 1:30PM and 3:30PM I landed eighteen trout. The first three sipped the comparadun, but then the stimulator began interfering with the allure of the caddis, as refusals predominated. I finally relented to the wishes of the trout, and I converted to a peacock hippie stomper and a size 14 light gray deer hair caddis. A few of the eighteen landed trout preferred the hippie stomper, but the remainder savored the caddis. Quite often the fish grabbed the trailing caddis at the lip of a long pocket, just as I initiated a lift to recast.

Nice Slots and Seams

What was the quality of the afternoon trout? All but three were brown trout. Two rainbow trout were chunky and in the twelve inch range, and three browns stretched to a similar length. Of course I landed a few smaller fish, but I was overall pleased with the size of the fish given the smaller size of the stream.

Lovely Spots

I thoroughly enjoyed my afternoon of prospecting with dry flies, and the fish were far more accommodating than their cousins in the bigger river, where I began my day. I would like to explore the Eagle River further on a future trip.

Fish Landed: 20

Time: 10:00AM – 3:45PM

Location: Between Avon and Edwards

Eagle River 07/07/2025 Photo Album

My last outing on the Arkansas River was mildly disappointing, so I shifted my fly fishing horizons to other options for Monday, July 07. Jane and I played pickleball on Friday and Saturday, so I was interested in returning to a Colorado River or lake to start the week. I considered some small streams, but after I checked the DWR web site for the Eagle River and noticed that the flows remained at a robust 400 CFS, I decided to pay the river near Avon another visit.

I got off to a nice early start, and the traffic was surprisingly light in Denver, thus allowing me to pull into my chosen parking space by 9:30AM. The air temperature was in the seventies, and as mentioned earlier, the flows were in the 350 – 400 CFS range and very clear. Once I was prepared to fish with my Sage R8 four weight, I marched directly to the river, and I rigged with a yellow fat Albert, iron sally and salvation nymph. From 10AM until 11:45AM I worked my way up the river prospecting with the dry/dropper arrangement, and I netted six fish. Several thirteen inch brown trout graced my net along with a chunky and slightly longer rainbow. Half the morning count fell for the iron sally and the other three nipped either the salvation nymph or a PMD supernova that replaced the salvation nymph, when the salvation was lost in the process of playing a fish.

Not Bad for Early

When I reached six fish landed, I encountered a gorgeous long run and pool. Two young anglers were in the process of taking positions at the tail of the pool. I asked if I could move on to the top, where the main center current created a nice shelf pool, and they agreed. By now it was 11:50AM, so I found a large flat rock and ate my lunch, while I observed the river. As I gazed at the splendid pool, yellow sallies popped off the river in heavy numbers, but I never witnessed a single surface take. In addition to the sallies I noted caddis and one or two pale morning duns. I also noticed that one of the pair of young anglers was driving long casts across the river to the opposite side, and during one of these casts, he hooked a dead tree limb. It was obvious that rescuing the fly was not an option, and sure enough he popped off his fly and returned to shore to reconfigure. I was baffled by the long casts, but who am I to critique?

Deep Slot

Once my lunch was completed, I began casting the dry/dropper from the midsection to the entering run, and I foul hooked a splendid rainbow trout in the process. I suspect it rose to the fat Albert, and I set the hook and dragged the trailing nymph into it. Once I covered the top third of the run and pool, I decided to revamp my offerings. Even though I did not see rises to the yellow sallies, could the fish be opportunistic if confronted with a yellow sally imitation? I decided to give it a try, I knotted a size 14 deer hair yellow sally to my line and then added a light gray size 14 deer hair caddis on an eighteen inch extension.

A Rainbow Joins the Catch

I prospected the same section of the run and pool that I covered with the dry/dropper with the double dry flies, but I achieved the same result; zero fish. Before I entered the pocketwater zone, I once again changed my approach. I replaced the deer hair yellow sally with a yellow size 14 stimulator, and I trailed the same gray deer hair caddis. I prospected this duo through the fifty yard pocketwater section, and I doubled the fish count from six to twelve. Quite a few of these fish were exceptional wild trout that put up very valiant battles. Two of the landed fish were rainbows, and the remainder were brown trout. Four of the six fish were healthy twelve and thirteen inch fish. The caddis accounted for all but one, and the outlier smashed the stimulator. I also endured a few long distance releases.

Pocket Water Bonanza

By 2:15 I reached the point, where I typically end my day, but given the early afternoon time, I decided to drive upstream to another favorite spot. By the time I hiked back to the car and drove a couple miles and hiked back down to the river, it was 2:45PM. Once again I chose a section that was mostly comprised of pocketwater, and the higher than normal flows restricted me to the right bank. I was actually skeptical that I would have success in the late afternoon.

Thick

However, some large clouds slid across the sky to provide intermittent shade, and PMD’s and caddis remained in play. I observed more pale morning duns, than I spotted at the earlier location, so I swapped out the caddis for a light gray size 16 comparadun. Between 2:45PM and 3:45PM I moved up the river along the right bank and probed all the likely riffles, seams and pockets with the two fly combination. Was my lack of confidence reinforced by the late afternoon results? No. I upped the fish count from twelve to twenty-one, and these were all very nice fish. The catch included several brown trout that extended the tape to fourteen inches along with several feisty rainbow trout in the twelve to thirteen inch range. I had a blast.

Promising

The comparadun worked for a couple fish, but then I suffered through a lull, as I moved through some very attractive water, so I replaced the comparadun with a size 16 light gray deer hair caddis. The caddis seemed to meet the needs of the hungry trout. The takes were actually difficult to see, as the trout barely disturbed the surface to snatch the food morsels. Glare was also a problem, and I shifted my position several times to place myself in more advantageous lighting.

Showing Off Color

My day ended with a disappointment. I cast the double/dry up and across the stream and then allowed the flies to sweep along some overhanging branches. Sure enough, after a five foot drift, a large nose surfaced, and I set the hook. Immediately I could see the side of a substantial brown trout perhaps in the fifteen inch range. It dove to the left, and I stripped in line, but then it headed directly across the current toward a cluster of overhanging dead branches. I knew that the game was over, if the robust fighter attained the shelter of the sticks, so I maintained steady pressure toward the left. This ploy lasted for a second or two, before the line popped free. I stripped in my line only to discover that it was devoid of flies, and this offered the perfect excuse to call it a day.

Beauty

I landed twenty-one healthy wild trout on the day, and this easily surpassed my expectations. The dry/dropper fishing was passable, but the highlight of the day was the double dry fly action. In spite of the warm air temperatures, the high flows kept the river residents in fine fighting condition, and they took advantage of the abundant aquatic insect supply. I matched their appetites and enjoyed superb dry fly fishing. I hope to return to the Eagle River again within the next couple weeks before the dog days of August arrive.

Fish Landed: 21

Time: 10:00AM – 4:30PM

Location: Eagle to Gypsum

Eagle River 06/30/2025 Photo Album

Every year during the last four or five I selected a few dates to join my friend, Dave G., on a guided float trip. Dave G. schedules ten or so of these ventures per year with Cutthroat Anglers. We typically use the same guide, Reed Ryan, and if any readers are interested in a guided float trip, I highly recommend Reed.

Monday, June 30 was my first scheduled float trip of the 2025 year. I drove to Eagle, CO on Sunday night and stayed with my friend Dave G. and his wife Beth, and this positioned us for an easy meet up with Reed on Monday morning. Monday’s weather was forecast to peak in the low eighties with mostly clear skies and sunshine, and the weather for the day did in fact evolve in this manner. Reed recommended that we float the Eagle River, so we met him at the parking lot at the Eagle Fairgrounds boat launch at 9AM. The flows on the Eagle on June 30 were in the 650 CFS range, and clarity was excellent. All the factors seemed aligned for a superb day of fly fishing.

Headed Downstream

By the time Reed prepared the raft and launched and configured two rods for each of us, the clock registered 10:00AM. Reed’s dog, Edna, was a very unobtrusive guest in the raft for our entire trip. I assembled my Scott six weight, and Reed supplied a five weight, since my Sage One remained in a state of being repaired. To begin the day the six weight was rigged with a chubby Chernobyl with an ice dub peacock body. Beneath the chubby, Reed added a flashback pheasant tail nymph and a dark olive Pat’s rubber leg size twelve. The depth from the chubby to the rubberlegs was around four feet.

Top Fly, Chubby Chernobyl

Since we chose the shorter float of eight miles (compared to the alternative 18 miler), we were able to explore the sweet spots more thoroughly. A PMD hatch commenced around noon, so we delayed our lunch break until 2:00PM. We did not want to be wasting valuable top water feeding time while eating lunch. We had our priorities straight.

Pat’s Rubber Legs

During the morning I manned the rear of the raft, and Dave G. commanded the front. In the early going I landed five gorgeous trout, and all nabbed the Pat’s rubberlegs, also known as the pickle fly. One of the five was a small barely countable brown trout, but the others were very substantial fish including a fine cutbow and a long brown trout in the seventeen inch range. The brown take was my favorite of the day, as I cast near the right bank and allowed the flies to drift very close to an overhanging cluster of dead branches. Just as the flies approached the branches I noticed movement a foot below the surface, so I set and connected with the prize brown. These are the fly fishing moments I live for.

On Fire

We swapped our dry/dropper rods for dry fly rods at 11:30, when we observed sporadic rises and a few emerging PMD’s, but we seemed to be a bit early with our top water offerings. We paused for snacks and water and rested for a bit, and then we resumed. By noon the hatch was developing, and our casts were rewarded frequently with hungry Eagle River trout. For dry flies I was deploying a yellow sally imitation as the front fly and a film critic PMD on the point. Between noon and 2:00PM we cast our double dries and enjoyed the magic of the hatch.

Anglers Behind Us

In addition to pale morning duns, the air was also occupied by yellow sallies, golden stoneflies and caddis; but the PMD’s seemed to be the main entrée. Reed worked diligently to place us in the best possible positions for success. Since we were not in a rush to cover the eight miles, he initiated “nose up” positioning quite often. This maneuver involves positioning the raft downstream from an attractive wide riffle and run section and then allowing the person in the nose to cast upstream. The ploy encourages thorough coverage of prime river real estate. In some cases Reed turned the raft around 180 degrees and gave the rear occupant shots at attractive water. It was a blast.

Film Critic PMD

I moved my fish count from five to thirteen during this dry fly searching time frame. Admittedly the average size shrank a bit, but a few very respectable trout were sprinkled among the smaller cousins.

Afternoon Brown Trout Beast

By 2:00PM we had covered what Reed considered the most exceptional water, and the hatch waned, so we pulled to the river bank for lunch. The sun was high in the sky, and it sent down intense rays on the river and those of us taking advantage of its offerings. Edna took advantage for a swim, and by 2:30 we were once again adrift on the rolling currents of the river.

Look at the Shoulders

Between 2:30PM and our takeout at 4:30PM, we covered quite a distance, and we once again cast our dry/droppers. I managed to boost the fish count from thirteen to sixteen, and although that represented fairly slow action, the three additions to my count log were quite nice, and included another brown in the seventeen to eighteen inch range with a significant girth.

We pulled ashore in Gypsum at 4:30PM, and Edna eagerly leaped into the water for a much deserved cooling off. Black fur must absorb the sun’s intense rays. Monday was another very enjoyable day on the Eagle River. I landed sixteen wild trout including some substantial fish in excess of fifteen inches. The weather was very cooperative, and I reveled in an extended pale morning dun hatch. The comradery among my friend Dave G., my guide Reed and myself was refreshing. I have one more guided float trip scheduled in 2025. I cannot wait.

Fish Landed: 16

Time: 10:00AM – 3:00PM

Location: Between Edwards and Eagle, CO

Eagle River 06/26/2025 Photo Album

Wednesday on the Yampa River was one of my best days of 2025 so far. I faced commitments for Friday through Monday that prevented me from fishing, and I had my eye on the receding flows of the Eagle River, so I decided to pay the freestone river near Avon and Eagle a visit. Flows at the Milk Creek station were in the 800 – 750 CFS range, and air temperatures were expected to peak in the low eighties. From past experience I knew that the flows recorded on the DWR site were advantageous for edge fishing the Eagle River.

I began my journey to the Eagle River early on Thursday morning to avoid construction delays in the Floyd Hill area, and that ploy was successful. I arrived along the Eagle River by 9:30AM, and after I assembled my Scott six weight, I hiked to the river and began my day. The temperature was already in the low seventies at 10AM. I chose my six weight in response to the high flows and the chance of tangling with muscular early season trout.

Starting Point

Once I was situated along the river, I began with an amber ice dub chubby Chernobyl, iron sally and salvation nymph. For the first hour I was not blessed with the presence of any trout in my net, although I did experience a pair of momentary hook ups. The lack of action provoked quite a few fly changes, and I cycled through an emerald caddis pupa, an olive-black Pat’s rubberlegs, and a 20 incher. By the time I paused for lunch, I managed to increment the fish count to two, including a small brown trout and a hot thirteen inch rainbow that flopped off my fly, just as I began to lift it over the rim of my net. My 1.75 hours of morning fishing were quite challenging and not what I expected.

While eating lunch I observed quite a few yellow sallies mixed with a few golden stoneflies. A hares ear nymph supposedly imitates a  yellow sally nymph, so I reverted to the iron sally with a hares ear on the tip. Finally the results began to improve, and I landed six additional trout to move the fish count to eight. Yes, from a numbers perspective it was quite slow, but there were a few highlights. Of the eight trout landed two were hot thirteen inch rainbows, and two were substantial fish with the remaining being less than twelve inches.

Barely Visible Pink

After lunch I approached a spot below a narrow island, and I began casting to a fairly long pocket in the main channel of the river. On the fifth drift the chubby Chernnobyl disappeared, and I was attached to a substantial fish. I battled the strong fighter and actually followed it downstream to some slack water along the bank, and when I slid the net beneath the wide body, I realized that I landed a gorgeous cutbow in the fifteen inch range. The colors were marvelous with a deep copper body, vivid spots, red cheeks and a bright orange slash.

By one o’clock I began to notice an abundant quantity of small pale morning duns, as they danced across the surface of the river in their tenacious attempt to become airborne. This observation prompted me to swap the hares ear for a size 18 beadhead pheasant tail nymph. The natural adults had a distinct pink-yellow hue, and they seemed small, thus the choice of a size 18. I stuck with this combination of flies, until 2:30PM, when I decided to give dry flies a test.

Best of the Day

During the early afternoon phase, when I cast the dry/dropper with the pheasant tail, I hooked another beast of a trout. In this case, the river warrior fought with dogged determination by diving, shaking and rolling. It was all I could do to contain the battler to the pool that I was next too, but eventually I scooped an eighteen inch brown trout into my net. I suspect it was the largest trout of 2025 so far for me. The lip of the brown was adorned with the size 18 pheasant tail.

Long Slick Produced

My switch to the double dry set up with a hippie stomper and cinnamon comparadun for the last thirty minutes yielded two twelve inch browns. One gulped the stomper and the other sipped the comparadun.

By 3:00PM I reached the point, where I normally quit, and the sun was high in the sky and beating down with direct rays. I was reluctant to continue up the river to fight the strong flows, so I hooked my fly to the rod guide and beat a path back to the car.

From a numbers perspective my day on Friday was not comparable to what I have come to expect from the Eagle River while edge fishing. I suspect that the hatches of pale morning duns, caddis, golden stoneflies and yellow sallies are in their early stages, and as the river drops to more manageable flows, the hatches will intensify, and the fishing will improve greatly. The cutbow and large brown trout made my day.  Hopefully I can swing another trip or two to the Eagle River in the next week or two.

Fish Landed: 8

Time: 10:30AM – 3:00PM

Location: Between Wolcott and Avon, CO

Eagle River 04/22/2025 Photo Album

My niece and friend from Philadelphia visited Jane and I last Monday through Wednesday, so I avoided fly fishing to devote my attention to help provide them with a Colorado experience. Of course, on Thursday we babysat our grandsons, and then adverse weather settled in Colorado thus preventing any fly fishing on Friday or the weekend. Needless to say, I was quite anxious to log some fishing trips, and the weather forecast was favorable for the week beginning on Monday, April 21. I researched stream flows and weather in several favored locations, but I settled on the Eagle River for my first outing of the week on Tuesday, April 22. I ruled out Monday mainly due to high wind speeds across the state.

Soft Grip

The weather at my destination was expected to be a high of 61 degrees with wind in the 10-12 MPH range and significant cloud cover for most of the afternoon. These were all reasons for optimism, in my mind. My concern was stream flows, as I saw a report of ten inches of snow in Vail on Friday and Saturday. Could the recent snow melt and raise water levels and reduce clarity? I checked the DWR stream flow data for the Eagle River, and it displayed flows in the 260 CFS range. On my previous visit on April 9, the flows were 200 CFS, and I enjoyed a very successful outing. Between April 9 and April 18, the graph depicted rising flows, until they peaked in the 460 CFS range. The arrival of the cold winter storm, however, caused the flows to drop to 260 CFS. I decided to make the drive to hopefully sneak in a solid day with blue wing olives hatching, before the run off commenced in earnest.

Emerged Above the Flat Submerged Rock Just Right of Center

I arrived at my targeted pullout a bit before 10:00AM, and this enabled me to begin fishing by 10:30AM. The dashboard temperature was 55 degrees, so I pulled on my Brooks long-sleeved undershirt and added my fleece hoodie and a rain shell. I pulled my Sage One five weight from its tube, and that became my fly fishing wand for the day.

On Display

A short hike took me to the massive pool that I fished on April 9, but my plan was to work my way upstream from the pool through pocket water. On April 9 I covered fifty yards of this area with decent success, and this prompted me to explore it farther.

Lavender

I began my quest for Eagle River trout with a size 8 gray body chubby Chernobyl, and beneath it I attached a brown size 12 2XL nymph with rubber legs and an olive perdigon. I began at the very top of the large pool in the deep entering runs and troughs, but the flies failed to deliver. I advanced to the first set of pockets, and I paused to adjust my offerings. I replaced the brown nymph with a 20 incher, and I kept the olive perdigon as the end fly. I also extended the leader with the hope of generating deeper drifts.

Looking Ahead

The move paid dividends, as I landed eleven trout between 10:30AM and 12:30PM, when I broke for lunch. My feet morphed into icy stumps, so I walked back along the path to the bench overlooking the gargantuan main pool. While eating my lunch I observed the pool, and I noticed sporadic rises, although the activity was not nearly as intense as the scene I witnessed on April 9. I decided to hit the head of the pool once again with my rig designed for deeper drifts, but the return visit failed to yield results.

I Approve

I exited the pool and ambled back along the paved path to my exit point before lunch, and I continued my journey up the river. In a short amount of time three fish smacked the olive perdigon in a tailout from a long riffle. The fish count ballooned to fourteen, but then I experienced a bit of a lull.

I adjusted my lineup by moving the olive perdigon to the upper position, and I knotted a size 22 beaded classic RS2 to the point. These flies remained in place, as I continued my upstream migration and incremented the fish count to 25. The fish population shifted to mostly brown trout during this phase of my day. I landed several decent browns in the thirteen inch size range, but most were smaller.

Beefy Brown

For most of the day the most productive spots featured tailouts at the end of long runs and riffles with moderate depth. Casting from the side and allowing the flies to lift and swing generated positive results.

Good Depth

As best as I can recall, the 20 incher nailed two trout, the RS2 accounted for two, the chubby Chernobyl attracted one, and a soft hackle emerger fooled a small brown at the end of the day in the large pool. The remaining netted fish were fooled by the olive perdigon. What a fish catching machine! My one regret is that I did not lengthen the leader during the final phase of my day. I wonder if a longer leader might have resulted in larger fish from some of the deeper runs and seams.

Tuesday was a fun day. I explored new water on the Eagle River and achieved positive results. I learned that the fish population in the area, where I fished, is healthy. I prospected with my dry/dropper, and I built the fish  count to the highest total of 2025 so far. Although I did not fish dries to the BWO hatch, I suspect that the nymphs were very active, and this explained my success with the olive perdigon and RS2. I may have threaded the needle with a successful day just before snow melt resumes in a significant way.

Fish Landed: 26

Time: 11:30AM – 5:00PM

Location: Between Avon and Wolcott

Eagle River 03/09/2025 Photo Album

I considered options for fly fishing on Wednesday, March 9, and eventually settled on the Eagle River. The main factor that swayed my decision was a weather forecast of a high of 59 degrees with partial cloudiness most of the afternoon. I was seeking blue wing olive action. Did my decision to fish the Eagle to hit a baetis hatch pan out? Read on.

On Tuesday evening, as Jane and I were returning from dinner with friends in southeast Denver, we hit a curb with the left front tire. The blowout was nearly instantaneous, but the stretch of highway offered no place to pull over for a tire change, so we limped across a bridge and settled in a parking space on a side street. Of course, by now it was dark, and that only added to the challenge ahead of us. I got out of the car and examined the left front tire, and I discovered a four inch gash on the sidewall. The tire was toast.

We opened the hatch and emptied the rear of the car of its contents, which happened to be quite a bit, and then we lifted the floor covering and found the jack. I used my phone to search for how to release the jack, and that met with success; however, we were unable to find the toolkit that included the lug tool. We bought the Tucson three years ago used, and apparently the previous owner kept the tire changing tool kit!

We locked the car and walked back to our house, which was about .5 mile, and we climbed into my Kia Telluride equipped with a screwdriver and flashlights. Fortunately we discovered that the Telluride tool kit was present, and the lug wrench fit the nuts on the Tucson. We quickly installed the temporary spare, and returned to the house.

I planned to leave the house for fishing by 8:00AM on Wednesday morning, but I was not comfortable leaving Jane with a car in need of a new tire and possible alignment, so I delayed my departure. We made the short drive to Les Schwab Tires, and we were near the front of the line. The sales counter person assessed our tire needs, and set everything up for tire replacement and alignment test during the day on Wednesday. I drove Jane home, and I now felt comfortable continuing with my fly fishing plans.

I departed Denver by 8:40AM, and I arrived at my favorite pullout along the Eagle River a bit before 11AM. The sky was very overcast, and the wind was bustling, so I bundled up with my Columbia long sleeved undershirt, my light down coat and my rain shell. I was comfortable for most of the time except after long periods standing in waist deep water. I selected my Sage One five weight to counter the wind, and in case I tangled with tough fish.

Not a Bad Start

Once I was prepared, I hiked a short distance to the river. Another angler occupied the spot that I intended to fish, so I cut downstream a bit to give him space and fished some water that I never sampled previously. I began my day with a size 8 gray-body chubby Chernobyl, a 20 incher and a size 16 olive perdigon. I fished for the next hour through some moderate riffle sections and then the tail of the long pool that was occupied by the other angler. I landed one twelve inch brown trout on the perdigon, and I connected with two additional fish briefly.

Rainbows Became Prevalent

By 12:30PM my feet were crying for relief, and my stomach was growling, so I retreated to the bank and downed my small lunch. After lunch I carefully waded across the tail of the pool, and quite a few rises materialized, so I changed tactics. I swapped the chubby for a peacock hippie stomper, and then I added an eighteen inch dropper and knotted on a CDC BWO. I began casting to rises, and eventually I landed a small brown trout on a downstream drift. I had swapped the CDC BWO for a soft hackle emerger fished on the surface, and it was this fly that duped the small brown. I thought I solved the riddle, but I soon discovered that I was sorely mistaken.

Sweet Spot Yielded Quite a Few Nice Fish

Between 12:30 and 1:30PM I did what Deming warned against. I continued doing the same thing expecting different results. The fish rose in waves, and I repeatedly plopped casts with my CDC BWO or soft hackle emerger above the sighted fish, but my flies were totally ignored. I began to despair that I was going to fish through an intense baetis hatch with only two small fish as my reward.

Jen and Dave Focused

Over the last several years I became acquainted with a friend on Instagram, @jenmenke. She is a fly fishing woman, fly tier, and gardner, and we occasionally exchanged comments. I knew that she and her husband lived in the Eagle, CO area, so I mentioned that I was making the trip on Wednesday, and she replied that she would like to meet up, so I told her where I planned to fish. This all coalesced, when Dave and Jen arrived at my fishing hole by 1:30PM. I quickly waded to shore to greet them, and we chatted for a bit, and then we each waded into the pool. I returned to the tail, while Dave took the midsection, and Jen angled toward the top area.

Stunning

My frustration continued, as I continued to deploy the double dries. The wind gusted and clouds scudded across the sky, and for brief periods fish rose to voraciously feed on what I believed were blue wing olive mayflies. Dave was in shouting distance above me, and he managed to land a trout on a dry that was sort of a classic Adams. I felt a tickle on my ear, and I reached to scratch it, and suddenly I discovered a small size 18 black stonefly in my hand. Could this be what the fish were eating and not blue wing olives? I was skeptical that stoneflies would hatch in dense numbers to create intense feeding, but maybe it was worth a try. I tied on one of my small stonefly imitations, and I gave it a ten minute test. Nothing. I was in a state of frustration, so I waded to shore and decided to circle around Jen and Dave and move into new water above the pool.

Moving Up the River

As I stopped to talk to Jen and Dave, Jen announced that she had several hits on a black RS2, and she landed a couple nice rainbows. This information prompted my to switch back to my dependable dry/dropper method. Once again I tied on a gray chubby Chernobyl, and then I brought back the olive perdigon, and I added a size 20 classic RS2 with a silver bead. I waded in to the very top of the run that entered the vast pool, and I began working the deep runs and pockets in that area. Voila! Even though I spotted many rising fish around me, the fish were also tuned into drifting nymphs. Between 2:30PM and 3:15PM, when Jen and Dave departed, I landed four trout, and they were very nice chunky rainbows in the thirteen to fourteen inch range. I was more than ecstatic with this positive turn of events. I was making ten to fifteen drifts for every successful hit, so it was not easy by any means, but persistence paid off. I also imparted movement in the form of lifts and swings, and several of the trout responded to these tactics.

Decent

I waded to shore and said my goodbyes to the fly fishing couple, and then I resumed my fly fishing progression. As planned, I moved up the river and flicked casts to likely spots where there was moderate depth and holding lies. In each case I spotted rising fish, but with persistence I was able to hook and land quality fish. By the time I reached fourteen trout, I was fifty yards above my starting point, so I exited the river and ambled back along the concrete path.

More Pockets

When I arrived back at the pool, I decided to cut back to the section at the top. When I arrived, fish continued to rise, and I could not ignore the pull of the hatch. I decided to take one last shot at dry flies, as many fish continued to feed on the surface. I tried the CDC BWO and the soft hackle emerger, and I managed to land one trout on each by casting across and allowing a downstream drift to the point were the fish were rising. The sky was dark and the wind continued to gust, but the fish seemed to revel in the adverse conditions for human beings.

Splendid Colors

What a day! The Tucson was ready for pickup by early afternoon. I met two new friends that share common interests, and hopefully there will be many more meetings in the future. And through the experience of Jen, I utilized an RS2, and it led to solid success over the course of Wednesday afternoon. Was I able to cast dry flies and fool fussy trout? No, but with the help of Jen, I resorted to a baetis nymph, and I enjoyed an amazing 2.5 hours late in the afternoon. This was perhaps my best day of 2025 so far, and I look forward to more such days before run off kicks in during May.

Fish Landed: 16

Love the Body Color on This Rainbow

Time: 11:15AM – 2:45PM

Location: National Forest land near Minturn

Cross Creek 07/22/2024 Photo Album

I finally pulled together everything necessary to visit a new stream. I was headed to this particular creek, when I was forced to postpone due to a screw in my tire. On Monday I was not victimized by any auto issues, although I was delayed by a flagman within four miles of my destination due to highway construction.

After a relatively rough drive of a mile on a dirt road, I arrived at the trailhead; and, of course, in spite of it being a weekday, all the spots in the lots were full. I negotiated a turnaround and parked along the shoulder downhill from the parking lots. The temperature was in the upper sixties, and I fit together my Loomis two piece five weight for the day’s action.

As I prepared to fish, another car arrived, and the solo occupant began chatting with me. He was also planning to fish, as he tossed waders into his daypack. He suggested that I was a bad ass, because I was hiking in my waders. I took this as a compliment, and I stopped next to him on my way to the trailhead. We were both ready at the same time, and he had fished the creek previously, so we made the hike together. I was pleased to accompany someone, who knew their way around. My new acquaintance’s name was Judge, and he was a retired airline pilot from Georgia. We shared much more information on our inbound hike, but for the sake of privacy, I will omit it from this blog entry.

Best Pool I Saw

Eventually we reached a place where some large elevated rocks overlooked a stunningly attractive pool. Judge was familiar with this obvious fish hole, but he insisted that I fish it first, since he needed to put on his waders and assemble his rod. I reluctantly acquiesced, and I carefully slid down the curved boulder and entered the stream. I began with a peacock hippie stomper solo, and I blasted out some long casts to the slow moving lower section. My casts were rather exemplary, if I may brag a bit, but they generated no interest. I slowly edged my way to the sweet spot below a beaver dam, but nary a trout even looked at my fly. How could this be? Maybe the trout were looking for food beneath the surface? I paused to add an eighteen inch dropper and attached a beadhead hares ear nymph. I lobbed ten casts along the current seam that curled next to the rock along the opposite bank. I was perplexed by my lack of success, and I surrendered. Judge watched me for awhile and then disappeared.

Productive Spot

The obvious trout honey hole looked like it hosted a lot of traffic, perhaps anglers and swimmers, so I attributed my absence of success to pressure. I decided to move upstream, but the large beaver pond looked like a dicey wading enterprise, so I attempted to hike around it, but I got stuck in a tough section of forest with dense deadfalls and thickets that grabbed my fly line and limbs at every turn. Eventually I stumbled across a faint path that aided my progress and led me back to the creek above the beaver pond.

I maneuvered myself into the creek, so that I was able to cover some nice pockets and shelf pools, and I landed three brook trout including a stunning ten incher. The first two snatched the hares ear, but the largest of the three smacked the hippie stomper. The counted fish were accompanied by several sub-six inch dinks, and this trend would continue throughout the day.

Lower Gradient Section

I was contemplating lunch, when Judge reappeared. He was now in his waders, and he was in the process of switching his tapered leader, as it remained configured for Euro nymphing. Judge suggested a nice cleared area for lunch, and I joined him. After lunch we split. I continued upstream, while he intended to move back down. I suspect he had his sights set on the initial pool that failed to deliver for me.

Decent

From 12:15 until 2:45 I worked my way upstream, and I boosted the fish count from three to sixteen. I probably had ten or more dinks that did not reach my arbitrary six inch minimum. Fifteen of the landed trout were brookies, and I was fortunate to net one gorgeous cutthroat of nine inches.

Shimmering

I covered .6 mile of the stream, and this was quite an accomplishment. Cross Creek crashed downhill at an alarming rate, and I moved around two waterfalls and numerous whitewater cascades. Steep banks and tight walls made wading akin to a gymnastics session. I sought only the slow moving and deep pools and pockets, where fish could seek refuge among the thunderous, crashing water volume.

Rare Shelf Pools

Wild Roses

After .4 mile I reached the bridge, where the main trail crossed the creek. I looked upstream at the unending whitewater plumes through the narrow canyon, and I realized that, if I continued, I might be forced to retrace my steps in order to exit. I decided to give it a cautious try. I progressed another .25 mile, and amazingly the gradient increased beyond that which I endured earlier. The catch rate waned, and my fear of the crashing water and my presence in a remote wilderness environment superseded my desire to catch fish.

One Cutthroat Among Many Brook Trout

Cutthroat Came from Deep Along the Whitewater Seam

I mounted a ridge of large round topped boulders and slowly worked my way back to the main trail and eventually visited my Telluride. There I discovered a hand printed note from Judge, who landed thirty fish. He attached the foam body yellow Sally that generated the success as well a new one to contrast the damage absorbed by his workhorse fly, I wonder if his fish came from the monster pool that skunked me?

I am pleased that I explored Cross Creek. The weather was perfect, and I landed sixteen wild jewels. I am not sure, however, whether I will return. The effort of the hike and rock and log scrambling did not justify the small brook trout that landed in my net. Perhaps the high gradient stream is more productive at lower flows. I will keep Cross Creek in mind for future trips, but I suspect there are better options when other streams are low as well.

Fish Landed: 16

Time: 3:45PM – 5:00PM

Location: Upper river south of Minturn

Eagle River 07/22/2024 Photo Album

As I slowly bounced down the pot holed dirt road after fishing Cross Creek, I decided to experiment with the upper Eagle River south of Minturn. I found a nice wide pullout, and I remained in my waders with my fly rod already strung, so I charged immediately down a path to the river and began casting. The hippie stomper from earlier remained on my line, and it trailed a size 16 light gray comparadun.

Seam Along Whitewater Produced a Nice Brown Trout

Nice Catch after All the Small Brook Trout

Another Nice Catch

In the early going the comparadun duped an eight inch brown trout in some moderate riffles, but I also endured quite a few refusals to the stomper and the comparadun. I replaced the comparadun with a size 16 light gray deer hair caddis. These two flies clicked with the trout, and I progressed along the left bank and landed five additional brown trout including a surprise thirteen incher and a respectable twelve inch fish. All the trout materialized from slow and deep water tight to the bank or exposed rocks. By 5PM I reached a narrow section with fast chutes and tumbling pockets, so I retreated to a location somewhat upstream from my original crossing point and moved back to the roadside bank.

Marginal Bank Pocket Produced a Surprisingly Large Fish

Another Typical Productive Pocket

I was pleased with the results  of my 1.5 hours of fishing on the upper Eagle River. All the brown trout except the first were larger than my largest brook trout on Cross Creek.

Fish Landed: 6

Time: 11:00AM – 4:00PM

Location: Between Avon and Eagle, Colorado

Eagle River 07/09/2024 Photo Album

My camping experience launched with a tough start, when I was unable to screw the regulator from the camp stove into the neck of the propane canisters. I tried four different containers with the same result, and my wrist and fingers were on the brink of injury as a result of all the pushing and twisting. I was forced to drive back to Minturn for a BBQ dinner at the Kirby Cosmos eatery, so glamping was gradually replacing camping. Surely my one night camping outing could not get any worse.

I returned to my campsite at Hornsilver after dinner, and recorded my fishing notes and read for a bit, before I crashed in my REI two-person tent. I was situated in a great position to get an early start on the Eagle River once again on Tuesday. My day on Monday was decent, so I decided to return to the same general area, but to begin my fishing venture farther upriver, thus, allowing me to overlap with the most productive section yet provide for farther advancement.

Hornsilver Camping Setup

I woke up at 6:30AM, but I remained in the tent in my comfortable sleeping bag until 7:00AM. When I stepped outside, I was immediately shocked by the cold temperature. I quickly wrapped myself in my heavy down parka, which I very nearly left behind. Of course, I was without a functioning camp stove, and this eliminated my ability to heat water for my usual mug of black tea. It also precluded hot oatmeal for breakfast, or the ability to wash my face with warm water.

Frost on the Tablecloth

I decided to begin preparing my sandwich for lunch, and at this point I discovered a thin film of frost on the the tablecloth as well as a coating on the rain fly of the tent. Apparently the temperature at Hornsilver dipped to freezing at the high elevation. I decided to wait a bit, until the air temperature elevated, but after fifteen minutes, I concluded I was wasting time and proceeded with the steps of sandwich construction. I placed two slices of bread on a paper towel and applied my favorite spread. At this point my hands began to ache, and I stuffed them into my parka pockets and blew on them for warmth. I was forced to go through this regimen with each step of building my sandwich, and it took a ridiculous amount of time to make one lunch item. Did I mention that, in the midst of the sandwich preparation, the mustard exploded from the squeeze bottle due to the high elevation and change in pressure?

Next I proceeded with the chore of breaking camp, and of course the sun remained sequestered behind the ridge to the east, and the air temperature dwelled in the thirties. Eventually I took down the wet tent and rainfly and rolled them up in the back of the car to dry out later. For breakfast I downed a yogurt cup and granola bar, but I almost broke my teeth on the frozen brick of a fruit and nut snack. Finally I was on my way, but was I? I had to stop two times on my way down Battle Mountain Pass for single lane road construction crews. I was aching for my standard cup of black tea, so I stopped at the Sunrise Cafe in Minturn only to discover that the only black tea on the menu was Earl Gray. I dislike Earl Gray, so I exited with the thought of stopping in Avon or Edwards.

When I reached the entrance to interstate 70 west, I was alerted to the fact that the on ramp was closed, and I had to detour east to the West Vail exit where I completed a U-turn to continue on my way to my chosen fly fishing destination. I looked at my watch and realized that I was on track to start fishing barely a half hour earlier than on Monday, when I packed the car and traveled all the way from Denver. So much for camping near the river. I abandoned all thoughts of tea and proceeded directly to the river.

Flows Remained High on Tuesday

OK, back to fly fishing. The temperature was in the low seventies, as I prepared to fish, and the sun was beating down relentlessly with no clouds in the sky. I sensed that Tuesday would be a difficult day. Flows were in the 700 CFS range, so the river was still high and cold to offset the warming impact of the sun’s rays, and that provided an element of hope. I hiked down to the river following Monday’s path, but I stopped short of my starting point of the previous day. To began my foray into edge fishing I tied an amber ice dub body chubby Chernobyl to my line and then added a beadhead hares ear to imitate yellow sally nymphs and an olive-black Pat’s rubber legs for weight and depth. As I suspected, I began casting at 11:00AM merely thirty minutes sooner than on Monday after packing the car for camping and fishing and driving from Denver. In the hour before lunch I managed two temporary connections with decent fish, but that was the extent of my success in spite of prospecting some very attractive pockets and riffles of moderate depth.

Early Catch

I ate my lunch by the river bank and observed, and yellow sallies dominated the sky, although the density of the hatch was far more sparse than that which I viewed on Monday. After lunch I removed the rubber legs and replaced it with an emerald caddis pupa and moved the hares ear to the end position. A few caddis flitted about among the willows, so I played the hunch that a caddis pupa might be the ticket. It worked temporarily, when I landed a nice, chunky thirteen inch rainbow, and that was bracketed by a pair of eleven inch fish that snatched the hares ear. One was a rainbow and one was a brown trout.

Talon Scarred Rainbow Trout

I moved along at a fairly rapid pace and hit the promising spots, but other than another small rainbow, my efforts were thwarted. By 2:00PM I began to suspect that the lower river was not going to produce, but I made a last ditch effort to salvage some action, and I swapped the caddis pupa for an iron sally. In a nice angled shelf pool the chubby dipped, and I found myself attached to an angry sixteen inch rainbow. It thrashed and splashed, but eventually I slid my net beneath it, and I thought it was the same fish I landed on Monday from the same location. Once I reviewed the photos, I realized it was a different rainbow with a talon mark in a different spot.

I moved on and skipped around a wide and marginal section and arrived at the nice moderate riffle area, where I ended my day on Monday. I tossed an abundant quantity of casts and covered all the lanes thoroughly, but I was not rewarded for my efficiency. Once again I progressed up the river, and in a deep pocket next to a fallen log I hooked and landed an eleven inch brown trout, and that ended my day on that section of the Eagle River.

I returned to the car, and as I did so, some large, dark clouds were shifting into position to the west. I decided to test another section of the river farther upstream closer to the headwaters with a narrower riverbed, more pockets for aeration, and more trees to provide shade. By the time I drove the extra miles and parked and hiked to my starting spot, it was 2:45PM, and the clouds were nearly above me, so I pulled on my rain jacket. I immediately approached a series of pockets that I favor, and I made a few casts with the dry/dropper that remained on my line, but success remained elusive.

New Location, Nice Brown Trout

Pockets Galore

I decided to cast my fortunes to a dry fly approach, so I removed all the dry/dropper flies and switched to a peacock body hippie stomper trailing a size 16 light gray caddis on a twelve inch dropper. Bingo! Success was instant. Over the next hour I progressed through the fifty yard section of pocket water and boosted the fish count from six to eighteen. Six of the twelve trout were small browns in the eight to ten inch range, but the other half dozen included a much appreciated rainbow of fifteen inches and a pair of brown trout in the thirteen inch range. The others were respectable browns and rainbows in the twelve inch bracket.

Surprise Catch

Between Middle of Three Exposed Rocks and Rock on Far Right

In one very attractive pocket I spotted two decent trout; one at the lip and the other toward the middle. I attempted to interest the one at the lip, but it was sullen and did not move, but the one higher up was definitely in feeding mode, and I managed a few looks but no takes. I began swapping out the trailing fly, and I moved through a cinnamon comparadun and an olive-brown body size 16 caddis, but neither flies changed the fish’s unwillingness to feed on my offerings.

Required a Fly Change

I moved on to the next deep pocket which was similar in dimensions and depth, and once again I spotted a large fish stationed at the lip of the pool. It also feigned indifference, so I exchanged the olive-brown caddis for a size 16 light gray comparadun. On the fifth drift, the targeted trout snatched the comparadun, and the fight commenced. I was fortunate enough to land the prize fifteen inch slab for what proved to be the prize of the day.

Deep Slot

Bravo

Large Deep Pocket

Tuesday was almost an exact replay of my day a year ago with my friend, Nate. We began early in the same spot, encountered challenging fishing and then defaulted to the upper river, where we met with some fast action late in the afternoon. I’m done with the lower Eagle for the summer, but a return to the upper section is certainly a consideration over the remainder of July.

Fish Landed: 18

Time: 11:30AM – 4:00PM

Location: West of Wolcott

Eagle River 07/08/2024 Photo Album

I was mostly over my cold, and with the Fourth of July week in the rear view mirror, I decided to do my first fly fishing/camping venture of the year. I departed Denver by 8:30AM, and this enabled me to reach my chosen destination on the Eagle River by 10:45AM.

The dashboard registered 72 degrees and the flows were in the 700 -800 CFS range. I love edge fishing the Eagle River, and the conditions were nearly perfect for that approach. For the most part I confined my casts to the twenty feet of river that bordered the left bank. The rest of the river except for the unreachable opposite bank was too fast to hold fish, so they were stacked up in the twenty foot ribbon of water. Pockets, eddies and moderate riffles with slow velocity and decent depth were my target for 4.5 hours on the river.

Starting Point

700 – 800 CFS

I began with a size 8 yellow fat Albert, an iron sally and a salvation nymph; and I covered quite a bit of water, before a chunky thirteen inch rainbow grabbed the iron sally. Most of the spots in the morning stretch were rather marginal, so I stuck with my lineup of flies, until I resumed after lunch.

Early Catch

Submerged Willows

Much Appreciated Brown Trout

During lunch along the river, I witnessed a fairly dense emergence of yellow sallies, so I swapped the salvation (PMD nymph) for a beadhead hares ear (yellow sally nymph). The move paid dividends, as the fish count mounted from one to twelve by 3:30PM. The yellow sallies definitely dominated the scene, but I also observed some size 18 caddis and a few pale morning duns. Most of the trout during this run grabbed the hares ear with perhaps two favoring the iron sally. This was by no means torrid fishing action, as the level of success required constant movement and an abundance of casting. Some attractive spots failed to produce, while other marginal locations provided a surprise.

Fighting Bow

Deep Trough

Pink Stripe

On the day I tallied thirteen landed trout, and two were browns with the remainder rainbows. Five of the final count were quite small, but the remaining eight were hard-fighting, chunky trout. Among the larger fish was a fifteen inch brown trout and three prize rainbows in the fifteen to sixteen inch range.

Talon Wound Obvious

Home of Talon Wound Rainbow

This brings me to number thirteen. I was near quitting time, and I was still fishing the dry/dropper, when I arrived at the spot, where the river widens, and there is a nice wide moderate depth riffle. I made some exploratory casts with the dry/dropper, but I experienced no luck, but I spotted a decent sized nose poking up two times to eat something. I removed the dry/dropper and shifted to a solo yellow sally dry fly. The fish refused the yellow sally, so I swapped it for a size 16 light gray comparadun, and a gorgeous sixteen inch rainbow sipped it confidently. What a way to end my day, and I love moments like that.

Home of Comparadun Sipper

Fish of the Day

Monday was a fun day. in addition to the thirteen landed trout, I tangled with three additional hot fish that managed to shed the fly. I played them long enough to realize that they were worthy of my deep regret.

I found a campsite at Hornsilver Campground for Monday night, but I was unable to connect the propane canister to the camp stove regulator, so I drove back to Kirby Cosmos in Minturn for a BBQ dinner. I suppose I can now claim that I was glamping and not camping.  A revisit to the Eagle River on Tuesday before returning to Denver is in the plans.

Fish Landed: 13